Payment unicorn Zepz raises $267 million from World Bank, Accel and TCV

Zepz, the parent company of African cross-border payment companies World Remit and Sendwave, has raised $267 million. This comes two years after the fintech reported reaching profitability for the first time.

The company did not disclose its valuation in this round, but it was valued at $5 billion when it previously raised $232 million in 2021.

New and existing investors invested in the round led by venture capital firm Accel. Leapfrog, TCV, and Coller Capital also participated. The International Financial Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group has also pledged to invest up to $20 million.

The fintech will use the funding to expand its reach in Africa. It currently operates in over 150 countries including South Africa, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and South Africa.

This new raise punctuates the long pause of Zepz’s IPO plans. In 2022, the London-based company paused plans to go public due to accounting issues. The unicorn’s investors are “in no rush” for a public listing,  Harry Nelis, partner at Accel one of the lead investors in this fresh round told Bloomberg.

It also follows the layoff of 26% of the workforce in May 2023 and 30 people in November 2023 citing redundancy and duplication of roles.

Founded in 2010 by Ismail Ahmed, WorldRemit enables users to send money from various countries to different destinations globally, with options for bank deposits, mobile money, and cash pickups.

WorldRemit became the UK’s first Black-founded fintech to achieve unicorn status with a valuation of $1 billion. It acquired Sendwave in February 2021 and now both operate as payment brands under the group, Zepz.

Mark Lenhard, Zepz’s CEO, believes there is more growth on the horizon for the company especially due to the continuing unrest across the world. “We certainly saw it during Covid. We’ll see it when there’s an earthquake. We’ll see it when there’s geopolitical unrest in the country,” Lenhard said. “More money will flow in because people get concerned about their families, about their communities and that’s their time of need.”